Red Tears
by Franne
Summary: For seven years Zelda remained in hiding, training in the ways of the Sheikah by Impa until Link, who had become trapped within the Sacred Realm, was freed. Her task is to stay hidden from Ganondorf and to aid the Hero of Time. But will she succeed? The Legend of Zelda belongs to Nintendo.
1. Prologue

**Hi guys! So, this is it! I'm very excited about this story, and I hope you guys like it as well! In this story, Zelda is Sheik and vice versa. So technically, Sheik is a girl. Sheik has the looks of a man, but on the inside she is a woman. If anything's not clear about that, feel free to PM me or tell it in your review. It's entirely written in Zelda/Sheik's POV. I did loads of research already, but if you know anything special about the Sheikah, feel free to tell me. Thanks to the awesome Bleachshowlover1 for coming up with a title. And the biggest thank you to the beautiful BlueFrenchHorn97 who is willing to beta read this story. In this prologue Zelda is ten years old. Please review.**

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I was scared. Why hadn't father listen to me? Where was he? Where was Impa? Just minutes ago everything had been fine, until Impa had to rush to dad because there was big trouble. The reason she had to go was because it was so big; the guards could not possibly protect their own king. In normal circumstances she would never have left me alone. But this was definitely not normal. The only thing she had said when she left kept me terrified.

"The prophecy you foretold… It has begun… Get ready, we don't have much time."

I had packed a bag with the things we needed. It was so sudden and I was so scared that I had a hard time holding things because my hands were trembling so much. The last thing I took was my blue ocarina, the ocarina of time. Link, he wouldn't know at all what was going on. I needed to tell him. I expected that he would have been here way sooner with all the three spiritual stones. I didn't blame him; he was just a child like me. But I couldn't wait any longer.

I took the ocarina in my hands, and started praying to the goddesses. "Dear golden goddesses. I need your help. Please give me the ability to create a short vision for the young hero. He has to know. It has to be done."

"Your prayers have been heard, princess of destiny," an angelic voice sounded.

"Thank you, oh great goddesses," I said, bowing out of respect. I was suddenly surrounded by a bluish light. I thought about the place I needed to be, and all of a sudden, I was in the temple of time. I breathed in slowly.

"Link...Can you hear me? It's me, Zelda. Link, when you hold this Ocarina in your hand... I won't be around anymore... I wanted to wait for you, but I couldn't delay any longer... At least I could leave you the ocarina and this melody..." I calmly showed him how to play the song of time on the ocarina. "Now Link. Play this melody in front of the altar in the Temple of Time. You must protect the Triforce!"

I opened my eyes again. I had done what I needed to do. He would be ok. Suddenly a blue figure with white hair entered my room.

"Impa! What do we do now?" I asked desperately, running up to her.

"Did you get everything I told you to pack?" she asked.

I nodded at the bag that was standing in front of my closet.

Where was my father? Why wasn't he with her? "Impa, where's my father?" I asked her.

She looked at me, guilt and compassion shining in her eyes. She shook her head. The feeling of pain and loss that streamed through my body was indescribable.

"No! It cannot be!" I yelled, crying. Sobs jolted trough my body as I held onto Impa's strong arms.

"Please, Zelda. I need you to be very brave ok? You know what's going on. You know what we need to do ok?" she said, while she was trying to sooth me.

I nodded. Impa was right. I tried to move the horrible thought of the dead of my father of my mind, and I tried to focus on the task that was lying ahead.

Impa took the bag and put her hand on my back. "Let's go."

We ran through the corridors and all I could hear were brave soldiers screaming from pain. A strong feeling of guilt dragged on me like a large rock, but Impa said I should try to ignore it. I tried. But the further we went out of the castle, the louder the screams sounded and the more blood I saw on the floors and walls. We finally reached the stables and Impa put me on what used to be my favourite horse. I liked it so much because it was large, white and it looked very brave and strong.

When I was on, Impa herself got on too and we left the stables. We rode to the front of the castle, passing several fighting scenes in the court yard. I noticed how ominous and dark the horizon looked. We rode into the market, and luckily people weren't on the streets, I assumed they were hiding or fleeing. We were almost at the gate, which was closed.

"Open the gates!" Impa yelled commandingly.

Suddenly I felt the urge to look behind. Behind us was the man that had caused this all: The man that was pure evil, the man that had killed my father. He was a large Gerudo, complete with green skin, yellow eyes and red hair, Ganondorf.

"Impa! Quick! It is him!" I yelled desperately. He was still quite far away, but his black steed was fast.

The gates opened and we rode out as fast as we could. But when we were past the river, I saw a confused and surprised looking boy standing there, dressed in green and accompanied by a fairy: Link. I quickly took the blue ocarina, and tossed it to Link. The only thing I could do now was hope that he would take the ocarina and everything would be clear for him. He could do this. I was sure of it. I held onto the horse as it rode us far into the unknown distance of Hyrule field.


	2. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! Sorry it took so long, my beta and I both have been very busy. Let's jump right into the first official chapter, after I thanked the amazing people who reviewed. Thanks to DestinyPrincess289, llinkismelol, ShadowNinja1011, TheSunsetWolf, TheMysteriousDude, BlueFrenchHorn97, Bleachshowlover1 and ZeldaFan for doing so! Thanks to BlueFrenchHorn97 for beta reading.**

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A few weeks and it would really begin. A few weeks, and my official quest would start. A few weeks and Link would awaken. It had been seven years. Seven years of anxiety, trouble and destruction. Impa and I were just outside of Castle Town, the whole city had fallen. Luckily, I had been right and almost all of the citizens had got just enough time to flee to Kakariko Village. It was located on the northeastern portion of Hyrule, right next to Hyrule Castle Town and at the foothills of Death Mountain. It was founded by the Sheikah, and Impa was considered the leader there until she was selected to be my attendant, and with that she left the village open to other races too. Though I became her biggest priority then, she still kept a watching eye over Kakariko. Until Link came along, Impa was the only one who ever believed my visions.

For seven years, we had remained in a forest that no one ever knew existed; only the Sheikah ever did. At first, I thought we would flee to Kakariko, but Impa said that it was too dangerous and risky. We had a small wooden house, and we had stayed there for seven years straight. I was sure that I couldn't leave Link all by himself in this.

I still remember when we first met. I was confused as how he got past my guards, but I when I saw that fairy of his, I knew that my dreams were true. He was indeed from the forest, and he had the first Spiritual stone, the Kokiri emerald. I told him about my dreams. How I saw dark storm clouds billowing over Hyrule, but that suddenly a ray of light shot out of the forest, parted the clouds and lit up the ground. The light turned into a child holding a green stone, followed by a fairy. I knew it was him. When he told me his name, it sounded strangely familiar. I now realized that that was probably the fact that we were yet another incarnation of the ancient hero and the princess of destiny. Then I told him the legend of the goddesses, and the Triforce. I also told him how to open the Sacred Realm, and I told him about how I thought that the dark clouds were a symbol for Ganondorf. If my dad would only have believed me… Link did exactly as I had said, and he went looking for the spiritual stones.

He had helped me, and I wanted to help him back. It had also quickly become clear that I couldn't just walk in as myself. Ganondorf or one of his helpers would immediately spot me, and I would be captured.

But Impa had a plan. I would become one of her kind: a Sheikah. And not a regular one, no. I had to become a Sheikah man; a _man. _At first, I thought Impa was joking, though she hardly ever does that, but I quickly realised she was being serious. I had asked her how for the love of Nayru I would ever manage to do something like that, and then she had asked me to just think about the question I had just asked, because she said I already knew the answer. She was referring to my wisdom, my own piece of the Triforce, to be exact. Yes, I was the holder of the Triforce of wisdom, as I had learned when I first started to get the visions. Impa had taught me all about it; the whole back story about the Sacred Realm, and how Ganondorf had started all of this. He held the Triforce of power; I held the Triforce of wisdom and none other than Link held the Triforce of Courage. That's why he was the chosen one to settle all of this. That's why he had to become the Hero of Time. After Impa had told me everything I realised that Link didn't know a single thing about the whole Sacred Realm story. And that's also why I had to tell him as my alter ego.

In the years that followed, Impa had taught me anything I had to know about Hyrule as the princess. I had protested, saying that I wasn't the princess of Hyrule anymore and that I didn't want to be called by that name. But Impa had sighed and told me that these were very relevant and important things. It had taken her a year to teach me all about the land of Hyrule, its rich history and its many inhabitants and races. The year after that was focused on the story of the Triforce only, and all the incarnations of the holders of the pieces, with me, Link and Ganondorf being the most recent ones. The following four and a half years were spent training me in the ways of a Sheikah, and figuring out how to disguise myself. Those years were definitely required to make a flawless plan. I would need to use my Triforce of Wisdom to change my skin colour, my eyes, my hair and my voice to make me pass as a Sheikah man. I would refer to myself as Sheik, as I had decided. I liked the sound of it. It sounded simple, but it had a certain tone to it that I found very interesting. Impa had used old books that had always been in the possession of the Sheikah and the Royal family to find out how I could use my Triforce to the best of my ability. She also found a way to turn Deku nuts into a magical item that could teleport me a few meters away. It might sound useless, but every time I would meet Link, I couldn't just walk away. He could follow me. Now that I think of it, I think Link will be the hardest to keep my secret from.

I had never changed fully into Sheik before. I first had to figure out how to do the separate parts before I could do it all together. I needed to pray to Nayru, and I had to picture how I wanted to look. It took some practice, and the eyes, hair and skin colour were fairly easy. But my voice was another thing. No matter how hard I tried, I still sounded like me, because I couldn't picture another male's voice, after spending years in isolation, let create one of my own. But somehow, I managed to do it. It was weird, to open my mouth and make sound but not to hear my own feminine voice. But I never thought that that was the least of my problems.

I had a costume, because I obviously couldn't walk in dressed in my formal princess clothes. Not that I ever wore those. I had needed a costume that would be comfortable and easy to travel and, if needed, battle with. I had made my own, and it was basically a blue jumpsuit with boots. My chest was covered in a white piece of fabric, and it had the red symbol of the Sheikah on it. The symbol was an eye in the middle with three triangular lashes on top and a tear drop coming down from the pupil. But the costume couldn't hide the fact that I was a female. I was seventeen years old, so I had formed breasts. I had got lots of muscles from the training, but my forearms looked very thin and fragile, and my face was the worst. It looked so horribly feminine. I had no other option then to use breast bindings, shoulder pads and I would wrap a fabric that looked like bandages around my forearms and my face to hide them.

I would see Link the first time when he would wake up from the Chamber of Sages where he was kept asleep for the past seven years. He was protected and guarded by Rauru, the Sage of Light. The Seven Sages were a group powerful allies of Link, who would help him on his quest. The sages who would give Link the six Medallions. Each represented one of the six races of Hyrule: Hylian, Kokiri, Goron, Zora, Sheikah and Gerudo. All of the Sages, with the exception of one, were familiar to Link. And I was their leader. I had no other choice, and I didn't mind it either. Impa went around as soon as Link was sealed away, telling them about their fate. Some weren't happy with it, but they luckily all accepted. They all lived close to the temples Link would need to tackle. Unfortunately, I couldn't get into the temples, and Link was the only one that could. That was where I came into the picture.

Every time Link would enter a temple, I would stand there first to teach him a song. Not a normal one though, It would be a warp song. Another thing I had learned when I was training was how to play the harp. I loved it because it had a beautiful angelic sound to it, and I even liked it more than the ocarina, to admit. The warp songs would only have their effect though when they were played on the Ocarina of Time. Whenever one would play a song, they would be warped to a place that song belonged to. For instance, the first song I would teach him was called the 'Minuet of Forest' and if Link or I would play it, it would warp us to the Sacred Forest Meadow near the Kokiri Forest. It would aid him even more.

But now, most of the sages were in distress with the chaos Ganondorf had caused. Every time Link would beat a temple, which was his main goal, he would free a Sage and they would add their powers to his. But if they weren't there to help him, everything could go wrong. When Link had awakened, I had to make sure all the Sages were ready and safe. No one had told me to do so, but I wanted them to be, as their leader. I would first need to see Saria, a Kokori. She was Link's childhood friend, and I bet that he would be surprised to find her back again; not only her, but whole Kokori forest. They would never have changed. They would always look like children. But Link grew up with them, so I figured it would be kind of a shock to finally realize he had never been a real Kokori. My plan was to go to her before Link would be awakened, but Impa had told me that there was no need to do that. Saria had told Impa that her and Link apparently had their own means of communication. It was a song she had taught him when they were kids. Whenever Link would play it, Saria would be able to hear what he had to say and vice versa. So she would be able to tell him herself what he needed to do. I would still see Link at the beginning of the forest temple though; I had to.

I was nervous even thinking that I would see him soon. I knew exactly what to do. I knew what to say, I knew which song I needed to teach him. I would see him again, and he would see me too. But he wouldn't know it was me. He would never know. That thought made me a bit sad, but I knew why I needed to do this. I needed to save my kingdom.


	3. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! So, it was my birthday last week (the 29****th**** to be exact) I had a blast! But last chapter didn't get many reviews… I don't know why, since you guys didn't review :) But please, tell me what's stopping you from reviewing, which would help a lot! Anyways, thanks to the people who did review! That's TheMysteriousDude, ShadowNinja, BlueFrenchHorn97, ZeldaFan and ZeldaLinkFan! Thanks to BlueFrenchHorn97 for beta reading!**

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"Zelda?" I heard Impa call my name.

"Yes?" I yelled back, jumping out of my bed. I dropped the book I was reading on my night stand and went to see her.

She looked relieved at the sight of me. "Ah there you are. Zelda, Rauru informed me that it's almost time. Tomorrow, Link will awaken, and Rauru will be explaining everything that happened to him. But you need to leave very early in the morning. Hyrule Castle Town is a long trip, as you know."

I nodded. "Ok. I will pack my stuff then." I walked back up to my bed and sat down. I was nervous. Impa hadn't let me out into Hyrule field since we've been here, only a specific area around our house to practice in. I had learnt how to use the bow, and I was now quite good at it. I liked archery. It kept me busy when I was bored. I also learnt how to ride a horse, though Impa said that for now, it would be safer if I travelled by foot. But that wasn't the only thing I was nervous about. I had to change into Sheik fully, and for longer than half a day.

First I had to explain to Link what he needed to do, but I couldn't even send him to the Temple yet! He couldn't enter without the right equipment, and that equipment could be found in Kakariko Village. But while he was looking for it I had to stay in front of the pedestal for some reason. Impa had told me I had to, so I obliged. I thought that it was so he couldn't travel back and forth in time, though I didn't really know why. I also didn't know if Link was going to complete the temple. I mean, he had to, but who said that he could? But, I couldn't afford to think like that.

"Zelda? Are you alright?" Impa asked. I looked up and nodded.

"Yes, sure. I'm just… Nervous…" I admitted.

Impa smiled understandingly. "Is it Sheik?"

I nodded again. "I just-, it's so odd."

"Well that's natural, but I know everything will be ok. We trained hard, and you are as prepared as can be," Impa said as she laid a comforting hand on my knee.

"Thank you," I said. Impa had kind of become a mother to me. She took care of me, and taught me loads of things. I didn't think about my father that often anymore. It had been long, so I had plenty of time to process his death. When I used to be sad about it, I thought of the fact that he was now with my mother, who had died when I was still very young. He died because he was brave, and I knew he was happy now and that thought kept me going.

"That's ok. Now pack your stuff and go to bed," she commanded me.

I took my pouch and stuffed in my bow with a quiver filled with arrows, my harp, a knife, food and water and some other stuff Impa had laid down for me to take with me too. I put my pouch next to my closet and I jumped on my bed. Luckily, I fell asleep quickly. It was going to be a long day tomorrow.

I was woken up by Impa softly calling me. "Zelda, it's time."

I got up, dressed into my blue costume, took my pouch and quickly ate some breakfast. I knew what I needed to do now, and I said goodbye to the old me. I closed my eyes and prayed to Nayru. I pictured myself how I wanted to look. Short blond hair, but in a different shade then mine, crimson red eyes, a slightly darker, tanned skin colour and then my voice. I got covered in a warm, nice light, just as I had expected. It hadn't taken me as long though as I had expected it would take. But I was finished. Impa smiled and placed me in front of a mirror. I was a bit shocked. I really didn't look like myself at all, perfect.

"Great," I said, still a bit startled by my weird, low-pitched voice. I wrapped the last bandages around my face, so that only my eyes and a part of my nose were visible. I turned to Impa, who nodded approvingly. I took my pouch and walked over to Impa one last time. I hugged her and sighed. I sure was going to miss her. She really was amazing, taking care of me for such a long time.

"We will see each other again soon. Good luck… Sheik…" she whispered.

I smiled and left, heading towards Hyrule field.

Impa had told me how to get there, and once I arrived, I would know where to go myself. I, as the former princess, knew whole Hyrule like the back of my hand. Impa had told me even more when she was teaching me about the history, mainly from the point of the Sheikah. Though I kind of was one of them now, I still knew very little about them. They were so mysterious, and they were planning on keeping it that way. I was out of the mysterious forest I formerly never knew the existence of, and was now on the large green land of Hyrule field, my field. I sighed and inhaled the soft, nice scent of grass. Now, everything seemed so… _fine, _kind of. I saw Death Mountain with a large, red, worrying cloud around it, the river towards Zora's Domain, the hill which was home to Lon Lon Ranch, the entrance to Kokiri village and Kakariko, and last, Hyrule Castle Town. I swallowed, and headed that way.

Everything seemed so bright and happy. It was too hopeful. I was happy I had left so early, because I had to cross the whole field before getting into Castle Town. The sun was shining bright and it felt nice on my skin. Well, my face and hands were the only parts exposed, but still. It was nice to be out and free again. I was getting thirsty, but I didn't dare to already start drinking my precious stock of water. I didn't know if the water from the river was still safe and not poisoned as it used to be, but I didn't want to risk it so I decided to ignore the small feeling of thirst, which was getting larger as I was getting closer towards Castle Town. It was only a few meters now, but something changed when I reached the bridge. The sky suddenly became dark and ominous, like it had been when Impa and I had left. The bridge itself was shattered and partially lying in the water. I jumped over it and went towards the centre. Once there I almost fell down to my knees.

The town was dark and grey and all the buildings were burned out. Only wooden skeletons of the buildings were remaining. You could still smell the ashes and despair. Hyrule castle- _my _castle rather, was gone. Instead there was a giant black floating castle which looked more like a fortress. It must have been Ganondorf's work. I could cry out of despair, but I somehow managed to hold my tears.

Protecting the centre, were several so called ReDeads. I had learned about them in a book Impa had obligated me to read about enemies I would possibly encounter. They were, well, dead monsters, who, if you got too close, would paralyze you and they would jump onto your back and bite your neck repeatedly until you were dead. Luckily, Impa thought me various ways to stealthily sneak past monsters like these. I passed several, and I was almost at the Temple of Time when I heard a bone-chilling shriek. I felt a sudden panic swell up in my chest and I quickly rolled towards the pathway that lead to the temple. I quickly turned around and to my delight, I had been fast enough. It slowly turned around and sat back onto the ground, just moaning like all the others. I smiled, and walked further.

The temple itself didn't look good either, but luckily it was spared from complete destruction. The trees however were dead, and areas that used to be filled with water were now empty and covered in dirt. This all made me so sad, but I tried to focus on my task lying ahead. I entered the temple and the inside looked basically exactly the same as it did seven years ago, weird. I walked over to the altar that the three spiritual stones were floating on. Behind it was an open area, and it was the first time I'd seen it, since it was previously closed off by the Door of Time before Link opened it.

Link! The one thing that I quickly noticed was the absence of the Master Sword that wasn't in its pedestal. But it wasn't supposed to be in it, because when Link took it out he took it with him in the Chamber of Sages.

The only thing I could do now was to wait. And so I did. I sat down against a wall and I drank some water. Then I realized that when Link would warp here, he would see me sitting and that would not be a good idea, unless I wanted to be speared by his sword. I tried to see if I could sit somewhere up against the walls, and luckily, they were quite sticky. I also had some helpful items to get up there, and I found myself a comfortable place to sit down and wait. I wondered how he would react to what Rauru and I told him. I mean, he had travelled through time. I presumed he would be a little bit shocked, but he knew his destiny. He knew that this had been vital to do.

After what seemed like at least an hour, a blue ray of light emerged from the ceiling and ended at the pedestal. Suddenly I saw a figure dressed in green, accompanied by a fairy, landing softly on the ground, Link. His fairy muttered some words to him and he slowly starts making his way forward. That was my moment. I jumped down, before the pedestal and landed softly, not making a sound. Still Link noticed my presence as he suddenly turned around and raised his sword at me. Oh Goddess. The young boy I left here seven years ago was nowhere to be seen. Instead, there was a young blond man with blue eyes looking suspiciously at me. He had become a lot taller and his face looked so much _older. _But there is no denying that he had become _handsome._ I almost blushed with that thought. What was I thinking? I could luckily recover quickly and I looked him in the eyes. He really didn't show a single sign of recognition. Good.

I inhaled calmly. "I've been waiting for you, Hero of Time. When evil rules all, an awakening voice from the Sacred Realm will call those destined to be Sages, who dwell in the five temples. One in a deep forest... One on a high mountain... One under a vast lake... One within the house of the dead... One inside a goddess of the sand... Together with the Hero of Time, the awakened ones will bind the evil and return the light of peace to the world... This is the legend of the temples passed down by my people, the Sheikah. I am Sheik. Survivor of the Sheikahs... As I see you standing there holding the mythical Master Sword, you really do look like the legendary Hero of Time... If you believe the legend, you have no choice. You must look for the five temples and awaken the five Sages... One Sage is waiting for the time of awakening in the Forest Temple." I crossed my arms, and Link was looking very curious to what I'm going to say next. "The Sage is a girl I am sure you know... Because of the evil power in the temple, she cannot hear the awakening call from the Sacred Realm... Unfortunately, equipped as you currently are, you cannot even enter the temple... But, if you believe what I'm saying, you should head to Kakariko Village... Do you understand, Link?"

He nodded. "Yes," he looks startled by hearing how much his voice had changed. Of course, I thought, puberty. It sounded nice, a bit hoarse, but still soft.

"Good," I answered. He looked confused, but he then turned around and walked out the door. I sighed. That went better than I thought it would. I sat down again, in front of the pedestal like Impa ordered me to do so. I sighed again. I hoped Link would be quick.


	4. Chapter 3

**Hey guys! So, my exams are over, so I have vacation now! Yay! Anyways, thanks to TheMysteriousDude, ShadowNinja1011, ZeldaLinkFan, ZeldaFan, teithant, igottawiimote and Wooz for reviewing! Thanks to BlueFrenchHorn97 for beta reading.**

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It took him long. I calculated in my head that it would take him half a day finding the hookshot that he needed to enter the Forest Temple. The only thing I could think about was how I needed to leave again. I ate and drank and then I left for Hyrule field. I was quite sure I could leave the pedestal alone, and well, Impa should have given me clearer instructions if I shouldn't have left. The Kokiri forest was a day if you went by foot. When I was far away enough from the bridge, the sky became blue and lively again. It was so odd. Castle Town must have suffered so much from all those dark powers… I passed Lon Lon Ranch, and even a few poes, but for the rest of it, Hyrule field was pretty quiet and boring.

I arrived quite fast at Kokiri forest, and I was happy Impa had forced me to train so much. I was kind of low on stamina when I finally was there, but I was just glad I made it without being attacked or such. I went over the bridge and entered the forest, but instead of being greeted by Kokiri, I was greeted by a Deku Baba. I avoided it, and snuck towards a house to see if the Kokiri were in there. I was worried about them. These monsters were all here because of Ganondorf's evil powers and because of the power that lived in Temple. They couldn't do anything against these monsters. They were helpless.

I peeked through the window and saw to my relief that they were indeed in their small homes. The closest towards me was home to three Kokiri boys. They looked like every other Kokiri, with hats pointing up, locks of hair covering their eyes, and mellow smiles with a slight overbite. They were discussing the fact that Kokiri forest had become such an awful place to be, but that they were glad everyone made it out safely. I smiled, and went up towards the Lost Woods.

Out of my pouch I took a map Impa had given me of this forest. It was very confusing, and I had read many stories of Kokiri becoming lost and thus changing into weird creatures called Skull Kids. If adults became lost, they would change into even weirder and creepier creatures called Stalfos. I shivered. What a horrible thing to happen. I paid a lot of attention to my map, since everywhere I came there were three entrances I needed to choose from. I came across one larger area, and I entered an area with a pond. I wanted to go through the pathway on my left, since I needed to go that way, but a small ginger Kokiri boy was preventing me from passing.

"Who are you?" he asked, placing his hands on his hips to make him look a bit tougher.

"Can I enter please?" I asked politely.

He shook his head. "I promised Saria I would never let anybody go through here."

I smiled. "I'm a friend of Saria. I'm here to help her."

He looked confused. "Sorry, but I don't know you. Saria didn't want anyone to follow her."

I sighed. "Listen. I know what's going on, and it's very brave of you that you are doing this for her. But she is in need. And I can help her."

He looked like he was in a fight with himself. He looked at me with his big blue eyes. "How do I know you're not lying? That you're not a bad guy?"

I sighed again. How could I convince him? I remembered the song Saria and Link shared, but I didn't know the notes of it. But all of a sudden, I got an idea.

"You can trust me, because Princess Zelda herself sent me," I said.

He looked startled by hearing her- or rather _my _name. "Really? Princess Zelda?"

I nodded.

"Can you prove it?" he asked, looking suspiciously.

I nodded again. "Give me a minute; I need to look for something."

I turned around and went to sit behind the stone that was sitting at the pond. I ripped a piece of paper of my map, took a feather and ink and I started writing. In my head I thanked Impa for the feather and ink I would never have bothered to take with me. She was always one step ahead.

'Dear brave citizen of Hyrule. This young man is a great warrior, and he is working for me. He is helping me and my friends, and thus is no danger to anyone. Regards, Zelda, Princess of Hyrule.' I finished with my own signature. Everyone in Hyrule knew my signature. They almost all had seen it somewhere.

I stood up and handed it to the boy. "I hope this is enough evidence."

He nodded, mouth open. "Wow. Sorry to keep you up. It's just, I promised her…"

I smiled. "That's ok. Thank you," I walked further but I suddenly turned around again. "Hey kid! What's your name?" I asked.

"Mido," he muttered.

I smiled and waved. "Good bye then, Mido."

I entered the Sacred Forest Meadow after a bit more walking, and I peeked around the wall to look for possible enemies. There was a giant Moblin guarding the tight passageways, and I just felt that there would be more. They were sentinels of Ganondorf's army, like so many enemies that infested Hyrule right now. I shot him with my bow and it was luckily defeated fairly easy. I defeated all the others too and I ran up the stairs. There was a giant Moblin standing there, which looked quite intimidating. He wielded a giant club which created dangerous shock-waves upon striking the ground. But since he was very slow he was actually dodged quite easy too.

I ran up another set of stairs, and I reached the area before the temple. Once again I decided to sit up high so I could see Link coming. I knew exactly what to say, since I had had seven years to figure it out. I decided to not only give him advice and teach him a song, but that I would fit in some poetry and things to think about as well. I thought long about these things, and I even let them fit with the occas if that was possible. I didn't really know why I did it like that, but I guessed that it was because I wanted to make the brief moments I saw Link special. I couldn't talk to him longer than needed according to Impa. I had protested, because I wanted to know more than how his quest was doing. I wanted to know how he was doing. Maybe that was a thing for later, but not for now.

Surprisingly, it didn't take him as long as I thought it would, and I wondered how he could be here so quickly. He walked toward a stump, and looked at it with a mixture of confusion and worry. I decided that that was my moment so I jumped down. He quickly turned around, sword ready in hand, but when he saw it was me, he seemed to relax a bit.

I walked a bit closer towards him, and started to speak. "The flow of time is always cruel... Its speed seems different for each person, but no one can change it... A thing that doesn't change with time is a memory of younger days... In order to come back here again, play the Minuet of Forest." I took out my harp, and Link looked a bit surprised. I played the Minuet of Forest twice to make sure he would remember the simple song. Then he took out his ocarina and he replayed the song I just taught him. I nodded approvingly and we both played it again. We actually sounded amazing together. I put away my harp. "Link... I'll see you again..."

I walked back a few steps; I took out a deku nut and threw it on the ground. It blinded Link, who was temporarily stunned by this movement. I reappeared a few meters down the stairs back again and I hid from Link. He looked around, confused as to where I was, but he then sighed and took out his hookshot. He aimed at a branch of a large tree that was sticking out of the entrance. He shot and got pulled up before he ran towards the Temple entrance. This was his first temple, and tackling this one would take him a long time. But I knew he would succeed in beating the temple, in saving Saria. I just knew it.


	5. Chapter 4

**Hey guys! God I love vacation :) I started playing Skyward Sword again in Hero mode, and god it's hard! Or maybe I'm just bad… That's also a possibility :) Plus, I have a tumblr now. It's AboutFranne, if you were wondering :) And now I'm also part of zeldafanfiction on tumblr, and it's one of the most useful ways to find fanfictions in my opinions! Anyways, thanks to TheMysteriousDude, ShadowNinja1011, ZeldaLinkFan and ZeldaFan for reviewing! Thanks to BlueFrenchHorn97 for beta reading.**

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While Link was in the Forest Temple, I had nothing to do. When he was done, I needed to meet him at the Temple of Time, and after that I had to meet him at the Fire Temple. He was going to have a hard time. To kill time I decided I would go to Kakariko village. To admit, I was eager to know how everyone was doing. I exited Kokiri forest and crossed Hyrule field. Evening was already beginning to creep over the land, and I didn't really want to bump into the enemies that appeared here at night so I made sure I was quick. I ran to the bridge over the river that streamed through Hyrule and ran up the stairs that marked the entrance to the village. Impa had told me that if I ever needed shelter I could stay at her old house. I knocked on the door and entered. Inside were two men and a red haired lady, who looked surprised at me.

"Excuse me, but my name is Sheik. Survivor of the Sheikah," I said.

By the sound of that word their faces lit up.

"Are you… sent by Impa?" one of the men asked.

"Yes. Well, she said that if I needed shelter, I could come here," I explained.

"Oh yes of course!" the lady said with a generous smile.

"Thank you," I said.

She replied with a smile and showed me where I could sleep. She explained that she owned the cucco pen outside and the cow that was sitting in a cage inside. Impa had given her this house and the men inside were just people that came to sleep here because with all the citizens of Castle Town there wasn't enough room for everyone to have their own house. I had loads of questions for her, but I could see that she was tired and to admit, I was getting tired too. She showed me my bed and I thanked her.

I lay down under the warm bed sheets and quickly drifted away to sleep. I dreamt of Link, who was all alone in the creepy Forest Temple. There were enemies attacking him, puzzles that were too hard to solve, and Link… he was losing it. I was watching him, but I couldn't do anything. I tried to yell, to scream, but it didn't have any effect. It was horrible.

I couldn't wait to actually see him again, to be sure he was ok, if I would see him again that is. I quickly got rid of that thought. Of course he would survive.

The next morning the lady woke me up. I took my pouch and sat down at a small wooden table. She had made me a simple breakfast.

I was a bit overwhelmed by this kindness. "You really shouldn't have-"

"Oh please, of course I made you breakfast," she smiled.

I smiled back. I took a piece of crusty bread and started eating. "So, is every citizen of Hyrule living here now?" I asked.

She nodded. "Yes, almost. They have built their own new Castle Town. The shopkeepers reopened their shops, and the villagers are trying to continue with their lives."

"You said almost everyone made it out. Who didn't?" I asked.

Her face turned grim. "Well, most of the soldiers passed away in the battle. And well, no one knows where Impa and the princess are. At first, we thought they were both dead. But thanks to you, we know that Impa is alive."

"The princess is too," I said softly.

She smiled to herself. "I knew Impa wouldn't leave her alone."

I smiled too. "Yeah, the princess was really worried about all of you, you know."

She nodded and looked at me. "I know."

It was weird, talking about myself without her knowing it. It _touched me_ that everyone was so worried about me. They could have been angry that I left without helping them, but they weren't. They were really trustworthy people.

I stood up. "Thank you, for all of this. I really appreciate it. But I have to leave. I want to check on the other villagers as well. But if I ever needed shelter again could -"

She interrupted me. "Of course you can, you're always welcome here."

"Goodbye then," I said.

"Good luck!" she yelled after me.

As the woman had said, the potion shop, the bazaar and the shooting gallery had reopened here. I bought a red potion just in case and some new arrows too. I recognized lots of people. I was never allowed too, but sometimes Impa would sneak me into Castle Town because I wanted to know my people. I recognized the always happy twin brothers, the stout lady with her dog… even the couple that was always together were here. I was really glad so much people made it out alive. I don't even want to think what would happened if no one got out in time.

The last thing I wanted to do was to check the graveyard in the back. All of my ancestors and family were buried there…. including my mother. She had died when I was very young, so I never really ever had got the chance to meet her. I still remember her singing my lullaby though. The simple but beautiful melody I was so familiar with. I sat in front of her grave and sang it for her. Though my voice was different and deep, I still managed to sing quite well. I hoped that she would still recognize it. I cried softly. I was never allowed to visit her grave, and that hurt me a lot. But now I did, I could accept it.

I stood up, said farewell to her and left the graveyard. I spent the rest of my day plucking my harp strings until I felt something. It was an odd but pleasant feeling of warmth growing in my chest. I didn't know how, but I knew this meant that Link did it. To admit, I was proud of him. This was very good. He had freed Saria and that meant I had to go to the Temple of Time immediately. Luckily Kakariko was very close to it, so I was much quicker there than Link.

I didn't hide in my usual spot, but instead I just waited for him next to the pedestal. Not much later after that, Link ran in. He didn't look surprised to see me.

"You destroyed the wicked creatures that haunted the temple and awakened the Sage... But there are still other Sages who need your help. In order to awaken all the other Sages, you must become even more powerful. You must travel over mountains... under water... and even through time... If you want to return to your original time, return the Master Sword to the Pedestal of Time. By doing this, you will travel back in time seven years... The time will come when you will have to return here quickly... I will teach this to you for when that time comes... The song to return you to the Temple of Time... The Prelude of Light…" I took my harp, and taught him the song like I did last time. "As long as you hold the Ocarina of Time and the Master Sword, you hold time itself in your hands... Link, we shall meet again!" I concluded before I stepped back, threw a deku nut and appeared outside the temple. I ran towards Kakariko again, but now I was heading for Death Mountain.

Death Mountain was a volcano in Hyrule, and it was home to the Gorons. Gorons were mostly friendly rock like creatures that lived in a large cavern which they called Goron City. There was always a large cloud circling around the mountain, but since Ganondorf took over, it was not its usual white color, but fiery red instead. The volcano was always active, but with the evil power in the temple there were now dangerous spontaneous eruptions.

Link needed to beat the Fire Temple now, and the sage there was a Goron he knew called Darunia. All of the Gorons got captured a few years ago, and Impa tried to help but there was nothing she could do. In the temple lived a dragon now that Ganondorf had revived. Ganondorf's plan was to feed the Gorons to the dragon as a warning for other races that might resist him. That was just cruel, and if he would have let the dragon escape, it would burn all of Hyrule. Darunia had tried to save all the Gorons and to defeat the dragon, but he didn't succeed. That's why Link needed to help him.

I was now at the entrance of Death Mountain trial. I avoided some simple but annoying enemies, and when I was at the top, I entered Death Mountain crater. It was full of lave, and I quickly adjusted to breathing under the intense heat the volcano gives off. I jumped across the bridge, which was a dangerous leap considering the lava under it, and climbed up a rock.

I was more than glad when I saw Link, because the heat became almost too much for me. He wore a different tunic, a red one that I suppose helped against the heat. He crossed the bridge with his hookshot, and I jumped down. His bright blue eyes almost seemed… relieved to see me again on such short notice. As for the poem I was about to recite, I was a bit embarrassed. The friendship I had with Link was about the only friendship I ever had, not counting Impa. If he only knew who I really was…

"It is something that grows over time... a true friendship. A feeling in the heart that becomes stronger over time... The passion of friendship will soon blossom into a righteous power and through it, you will know which way to go... This song is dedicated to the power of the heart... Listen to the Bolero of Fire..." I thought him the song. "Link... I'll see you again..." I threw a deku nut and appeared right outside the crater. I was relieved to be in the cool, open air again. I sighed. I hope he would survive the heat of the temple.


	6. Chapter 5

**Hi guys! How's your vacation going? :) Mine's pretty good! We are already half through this story! Wow. Thanks to TheMysteriousDude, ShadowNinja1011, ButterflyBabyBlue and ZeldaLinkFan for reviewing. Thanks to BlueFrenchHorn97 for beta reading.**

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I was making my way towards Zora's domain when I noticed something was off: The closer I got to the top, the colder the air became and the more snowflakes fluttered down past me. I shook my head and feared the worst. I stood before the waterfall that was the entrance and played my own lullaby on my harp, since that was the only way the waterfall would split in two, making a passageway. This was done because Hylians didn't belong in Zora's domain, except for the ones who had to be there to fulfil their purpose like me and Link.

I jumped behind the waterfall which had parted, and continued.

"Oh no…" I whispered.

Zora's domain had been completely frozen over.

I had never seen it in its original state, but I had seen it in books. It's usually wildly flowing waterfall was turned into a vast block of ice. The pool they used to swim in was also frozen over by a thick layer. My breath formed small clouds because of the cold. I shivered and sighed.

I carefully jumped on the ice and saw that the Zora's were still under it. I walked around the waterfall further, becoming more anxious because I couldn't find what I was looking for. Or better, who I was looking for. I could sense that she was not inside the temple, thus not ready to aid Link. Ruto, the Zora princess who was the Sage of Water, was nowhere to be found. She wasn't under the ice, at least.

I didn't know much about her, I hadn't met her yet, nor had I met any of the previous sages. The only thing I knew was that she was a young Zora who was the princess and the Sage of Water.

I saw a wooden sign that pointed to the right saying: King Zora and I suddenly got an idea where she might have been.

I ran across the ice, careful not to slip and there they were; King Zora and princess Ruto. They were luckily covered in red ice, and I knew that that could be melted by blue ice, unfortunately solely found in the Ice Cavern.

I didn't want to go there, because I had no experience whatsoever with dungeons. This was a mini dungeon though, and that was why I could enter it while I couldn't enter the other dungeons: there wasn't any power brought in by Ganondorf there. But I had to enter it anyways, since I had to wait for Link at the end of the cavern. This was because Link would otherwise have no idea what to do with the item he would obtain there, or where to continue.

I sighed, and walked to Zora's fountain. I hopped across the ice platforms that were cleverly laid around in the ice cold water and entered the dungeon.

The dungeon was even colder than the rest, and there was an eerie atmosphere. It looked pretty though, the floor and walls were white that almost blinded you, and it looked like they were covered in crystals. But the beauty was forgettable, since it was full of enemies. I had to avoid loads of stalactites that fell down and stalagmites I that had to destroy. I could avoid most of the monsters, luckily, and while being stealthy I could reach the room with the blue ice quickly. I could jump higher and was more trained to do so then Link, so he still had to tackle most of the puzzles and enemies.

I ran back to Ruto and her father as quick as I could. I only had enough blue ice for one of them, and I needed to save Ruto.

"Sorry," I whispered to the king.

I poured the blue ice over Ruto and it almost immediately melted. She looked around her, clearly confused until she noticed me. Her indigo eyes grew big and she looked even more confused.

"What happened? Who are you?" she asked in a high pitched voice.

I stepped forward. "I am Sheik, survivor of the Sheikah. You were frozen under the ice, because of the evil powers in the temple. Your fate-"

"I know what you mean. You mean my fate as the Sage of Water right?" she said, giving me a weak smile.

I nodded. "Yes. You will need to proceed to the Water Temple in Lake Hylia to aid the Hero of Time."

Her eyes lit up all of a sudden. "Link?"

I nodded again. "Yes."

"Is he alright?" she asked, worried.

"He is fine…" I say. "How do you know him?" I ask, immediately regretting it. I promised Impa I would never do or say anything that had nothing to do with the quest.

She blushed. "Well… Let's just say I've known him since we were kids…" she giggled. "Oh, I gave him the Zora Sapphire seven years ago…"

I nodded. She meant one of the spiritual stones Link had needed to collect. What worried me was that I had read somewhere that it was a symbol for an engagement ring to the Zora's… What if she and Link- no. I couldn't allow myself to think about him like that. That would be wrong and selfish. Impa would be disappointed.

"Yes, we had some lovely moments when we were young," Ruto smiled.

I felt a sting of jealousy I had never had before nor I wanted to have. I quickly spoke again. "Well, you should be going… Just go to the Temple and-"

"I know what to do," she laughed.

"Ok then. Goodbye," I said.

"Goodbye! And thank you, Sheik," she said.

I nodded and ran towards the entrance of the fountain. I didn't want to enter the cave just yet, since it was too cold for me to stay inside for a long time. I decided to wait until Link saved Darunia. I ate some soup the lady in Kakariko had given me, and drank water. I replenished the bottle with water from the unfrozen fountain, since there were no signs it was poisoned. What bothered me was that I knew there used to be a giant fish called Jabu-Jabu here, but that he was nowhere to be seen. He wasn't frozen over and I hoped he wasn't killed by Ganondorf. Maybe he fled, or maybe King Zora saved him. I stopped worrying and decided I would try to catch some sleep.

I was woken up by the same warm feeling I had felt when Link had saved Saria, which meant he saved Darunia. I smiled; this meant he would be making his way here.

I entered the cavern again, making my way through it like I did last time. Now I had to go deeper into the cavern though, but it was nothing I couldn't handle. I did get hit by a stalactite, which had given me a cut on my leg, but it wasn't serious, so I didn't bother to treat it.

When I reached the final room of the dungeon, there was a white Wolfos waiting for me, or rather Link. I almost cursed, and quickly climbed up high where he couldn't reach me. It tried to jump and dash up the walls, but he couldn't do it, luckily. It howled out of anger, and sat on the ground, waiting for me to jump off. I finally had some time to look around the room. It was stunning. Blue crystals that looked like they were glowing were placed next to all the walls.

Suddenly Link entered. I wanted to warn him for the Wolfos, but he had already noticed it. He attacked it like it was nothing, and I felt embarrassed that I couldn't handle it with so much ease. Link opened the large, brown chest that had appeared and pulled out a set of iron boots. I jumped down and he turned around.

"We meet again, Link... If you came here to meet the Zoras, you wasted your time..." I said. He looked at me, confused and disappointed. "This is all there is... With one exception, the Zoras are all now sealed under this thick ice sheet... I managed to rescue the Zora princess from under the ice, but... she left to head for the Water Temple... This ice is created by an evil curse... The monster in the Water Temple is the source of the curse. Unless you shut off the source, this ice will never melt... If you have courage enough to confront the danger and save the Zoras, I will teach you the melody that leads to the temple." I continued. Now, I was going to recite my favourite poem to him. It was my favourite because it fit with how I felt about the relationship between me and Link. "Time passes, people move... Like a river's flow, it never ends... A childish mind will turn to noble ambition... Young love will become deep affection... The clear water's surface reflects growth... Now listen to the Serenade of Water to reflect upon yourself..." I took out my harp and taught it to him. This was actually my favourite melody. The notes sounded encouraging, a bit cheery, but not too much. After we were done, we both put our instruments away. "Link... I'll see you again..." I said.

I stepped back, and just before I threw my deku nut Link dashed forward.

"Wait!" I heard him yell, but it was already too late.

He had yelled at me to wait for him. I wished I could return to the cavern to ask him why he wanted me to wait, but I couldn't. Next time, I would give him enough time, if he really did wanted to tell me something.

I appeared just at the entrance of the cavern and ran off towards Hyrule Field. The Water temple would take him quite some time.


	7. Chapter 6

**Hi guys! So, this weekend my orchestra became world champion in the World Music Contest in the Netherlands with 91.17%! :D We practiced a lot, but it was definitely worth it. Anyways, thanks to TheMysteriousDude, ZeldaLinkFan, ZeldaFan, SheikIsAwesome and ShadowNinja1011 for reviewing! Thanks to BlueFrenchHorn97 for beta reading.**

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The water temple has always been described in books as utterly confusing, so I guessed it would take Link quite some time. My problem was that I had no idea what to do now. It was way too early to head for Lake Hylia and there was nothing for me to do. I missed Impa. I wanted to pay her a visit, but she had told me lots of times that this time was too precious to be wasted, meaning that if I would pay her a visit, she'd probably only tell me that there were more important things to do. I loved her, I really did, but sometimes, she could be so focused on one main goal, not paying attention to the small things around her.

I searched a nice place under a tree in Hyrule field, and sat down. It bugged me that I didn't know what Link had wanted to tell me. What if it was important? I sighed. When the water temple was over with, I would meet him at Lake Hylia again.

I was startled by the sound of monsters howling in the distance. Evening was falling, and I still didn't know what to do. I looked around, until my eyes fell onto a large, round ranch in the center of Hyrule field. Lon Lon Ranch. I knew that the owner, Talon, used to deliver Lon Lon milk to the castle and I remember that his daughter Malon used to sing in the market in Castle Town. I took my stuff, and headed there. I walked over to the pretty, ginger young woman who was standing by the horses. She was singing a nice song and her voice sounded crystal clear. When she noticed me, she looked surprised.

"Who are you? I've never seen you before!" she smiled. "I'm Malon," she said, reaching her hand out.

"Sheik," I said, shaking her hand.

"So Sheik, why are you here? If I can ask that."

"I just wanted to check if everyone here was ok," I admitted.

"That's so nice of you! And yes, it is, thanks to Link!" she smiled.

So he has done more good deeds than he was supposed to. He really was a hero.

"Oh really?"

"Yes! I gave him my best horse for that. Epona. But I know he'll take good care of her," she nodded.

"That's good." So that's why he was always so fast.

"So, were you sent by the princess or something?" she asked.

I looked at her, a little confused. "Why would you think that?"

"Well, she's always been a very caring person from what I've heard. It's too bad no one knows where she is."

I smiled. "Well yes, I am sent by her. And she is doing good."

"Good to hear. So Sheik? Do you need a place to stay over for the night?" she asked kindly.

"That would be nice," I smiled. "Thank you Malon."

"You're welcome! It's not like we get a lot of visitors anyway, with all the people gone and monsters wandering around everywhere," she sighed. "Anyways! I'll show you where you can sleep," she said cheerfully. She was very hopeful.

After a good night of sleep I was woken up by cuccos crowing loudly. I thanked Malon, who gave me some food and a bottle of fresh milk before I left. I suddenly felt a warm feeling, and I knew it was time to move on.

I jogged towards Lake Hylia, and much to my disgrace, it wasn't filled with water, only the very bottom had some water in it. I ran across several dangerous looking wooden bridges until I reached an island with a large tree on it. A mark was on the ground and I knew that was where Link would appear when he was done talking to Ruto. I sat down under the tree, playing random notes on my harp. The sound of running water startled me. I ran to the edge of the island, and the lake filled with water again. I smiled.

"As the water rises, the evil is vanishing from the lake... Link, you did it!" I said more to myself then to Link. Behind me I heard a noise and someone landing on the mark on the ground. I turned around and saw that it was, of course, Link.

"Ruto… she wanted to thank you," Link said, looking curious at me.

I smiled. "Did Ruto want to thank me? I see... We have to return peace to Hyrule for her sake, too. Don't we?" I turned around again, looking at the lake. "Look at that, Link... Together, you and Princess Ruto destroyed the evil monster! Once again, the lake is filled with pure water. All is as it was here."

He came to stand next to me, looking over the beauty of the lake too.

"Sheik?" Link asked, a bit timid.

"Yes?" I answered, my heart beating against my chest, though I didn't exactly knew the reason why.

"Ruto, she said that Zelda was ok. Is she really?" he asked.

I smiled again. My chest suddenly felt warm and butterflies were tickling in my belly. I was glad my face was covered up, or he would have seen me blush. He asked about me. He didn't forget me. "She is fine. Really."

Link let out a relieved sigh and smiled. "Ok then." He continued looking over the lake, and I glanced at him.

His golden hair was reflecting the bright rays of sunlight, and his blue tunic matched the water. I sighed and took a few steps backwards. I had already said too much to him. More than I was allowed by Impa. But I missed talking to him. I shook my head, quickly climbed the tree on the island and watched him turn around, his bright blue eyes scanning the area for me.

I jumped down the tree, making a swan dive into the lake, getting away from him. I swam away as fast as I could, and at the end of the lake I pulled myself out, and ran away. On Hyrule field, I got distracted by something however.

Right under Death Mountain, there was a large dark cloud of smoke. The smell of ashes and burning crawled into my nose. I started running towards it, repeating in my head this couldn't be happening.

Kakariko Village was on fire.


	8. Chapter 7

**Hi guys! I've been to France, and it was awesome! Though I did got food poisoning the last day, but that wasn't that bad, meaning I didn't die :) Thanks to ShadowNinja1011; ZeldaLinkFan and 1830 Iliana for reviewing! Thanks to BlueFrenchHorn97 for beta reading!**

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I arrived quickly, and people were yelling in fear, screaming for help. At the well, I saw a tall, very familiar figure, who appeared to be the only one not reacting to the fire.

"Impa!" I yelled, dashing towards her.

She turned around, confused, because she hardly recognized my voice. Even by the sight of me she didn't react for a few seconds. But suddenly her red eyes grew big when she did recognize me and she embraced me.

"What is happening?" I asked, my voice sounding extremely worried and upset. "Where is everyone?" I continued, not giving her the chance to answer.

"They are in their houses and won't come out until someone tells them to, as I obliged them to do. They are too scared. Now listen carefully. Do you remember what I used to tell you about an evil spirit that had plagued Kakariko in the past?" she asked.

I nodded firmly. "The one you had locked away?"

"Yes, exactly. It has returned. It will not take long before it will escape the bottom of the well, and I need to seal it away again. To do that, I need to go to the Shadow temple, understand?"

"But Impa-"

"No. I needed to go anyway. I'm a sage too, remember?"

"Of course. What do I need to do?"

"You need to stay here; the hero will be here in any minute. You need to keep him safe from the evil spirit; it will appear in its original form, which is extremely dangerous. When he has left to go the Shadow Temple, you will need to help and check on all the villagers."

"Ok, I will. Good luck," I said, giving her a hug.

"You too. You are doing a great job, by the way," she said, giving me a tiny but soft smile.

"Thank you. Good bye," I said, while I watched her heading towards the graveyard.

I turned to the well, grimly ready for the evil to break out.

Impa had been right. Only a moment after she had left, Link arrived.

I felt concerned. Normally I would have been happy, but I didn't quite know yet what the monster was capable of.

"Sheik!" he yelled, panicked.

"Get back, Link!" I yelled back. Right at that moment the wooden frame above the well was tossed through the air, landing behind us.

"Whoa!" he yelled, turning around, looking at the wood.

Suddenly, out of the well, there appeared a thick, brown cloudlike mist that grabbed me and took me up in the air. I yelled while it flung me around, until it released me, throwing me a few feet away where I landed with a loud scream flat on my face on the ground. All of the air in my lungs had disappeared, and after short, painful, desperate for air gasps I could barely breathe again.

Link gasped and ran towards me, stooping down to look if I was alright. I heard a weird noise that was presumably the spirit and Link stood up, drawing his sword. I lifted my head up and reached my hand out at him, trying to yell at him that he couldn't do anything about it, but it was too late.

It crawled at us and took Link by great force. He was dealt with more harshly, like the spirit knew who he was.

I watched him being thrown against buildings, and I couldn't even stand up to help him. Link yelled in pain and I felt awfully guilty. Finally, Link was released and knocked out by landing on his head. The spirit quickly flew towards the graveyard, and I tried to crawl to Link, who was a few feet in front of me. My chest hurt and my wrist did even more, but I couldn't stop to check it. I needed to do what was most important.

When I reached him, I laid him on his back, and checked his head. I gently brushed his golden locks out of his face, and there was a thin but long wound on his forehead, making crimson red blood drip down his face. His eyes were shut tight, but there seemed to be no other damage to his face. Rain was falling down the skies, drenching both me and Link. I needed to get him somewhere else.

I had finally gotten a bit of my stamina back, so I lifted him up as best as I could, which was difficult since I still had trouble breathing, and laid him down him under a shed by the cucco pen.

His blue, sparkling fairy was flying around him like crazy, obviously worried, making tingling noises I couldn't comprehend until it seemed to realize who I was and it hid in Links green floppy hat that I had laid next to him.

A pool or red blood had stained his green Kokiri tunic. As gently as I could, I removed his tunic, his pouch and his chain mail until his chest was bare. A large cut was spread across his chest, but it wasn't bleeding as bad as the wound on his head. I decided to treat the head wound first, and I realized I couldn't leave Link alone, so that meant I couldn't go call for help. Not that I thought anyone could really handle his wounds. Except for the potion shop owner maybe, but I doubted he would come out of his house. I cleaned both wounds with water and ripped off some of the bandage around my wrist, which still hurt terribly. I tied it around his head, and hoped it would stem the blood flow a little bit. For the wound on his chest, I took more bandages and wrapped it around his chest area. While doing that I noticed lots of old and new wounds, scars, bruises and burns covering his whole body. This startled me and I gasped, because though I knew that he would get wounded during his quest, I could never have imagined it would have been this bad.

Guilt suddenly washed over me and a chill went down my spine. This had all been my fault. If I had never asked him to do this, he would have never been put through so much. He wouldn't be wounded so badly. He wouldn't be knocked out right now.

I felt miserable, and for the first time in years, tears came streaming down my face. Not just for Link, but for my father, my mother, my people… So many people had died or were severely wounded because of me. I felt so useless. I couldn't do anything about it. It was all my fault.

And I- I had had to grow up so fast. I had never had gotten the time to stand still by the things that had happened. My father dying, Hyrule fallen, Ganondorf taken over, me not having a childhood, Link not having a childhood… I had never had gotten the time to cry and be sad about it.

I sighed, concluding there was nothing I could do about it right now. There still was a haunting feeling of guilt in my stomach, and I couldn't stop thinking about it. I sat down, accidently using my wrist to keep my balance and a pang shot through my whole body. I tried to circle my hand around, but I quickly regretted that, since it only seemed to make the pain much worse. I figured it was broken, but since I didn't have a clue what to do with broken bones, I let it be.

I didn't know if Link had broken anything. I didn't really know how broken bones looked like from the outside, but nothing seemed to stand in too odd of a position while I checked his body. I would see if he had broken something when he would awaken.

I sighed again and sat down next to Link and watched him sleep. He looked so peaceful, like no one would ever bother to disturb him. I was glad he didn't seem to be haunted by nightmares like me, at least not now. I softly cupped his cheek, and pulled my hand back quickly. What did I think I was doing? But, then again, he was my childhood friend. He just didn't know it truly was me. My belly felt ticklish, and my heart seemed to begin beating a little bit faster. My hand went through his soft hair and I smiled. I lay down next to him and allowed my tired eyelids to close and as I almost fell asleep until someone moving next to me woke me back up. I quickly stood up and watched Link staring at me, his blue eyes full of questions.

I smiled shortly. "Looks like you're coming around... Link... "

He stood up to, making us face each other.

"A terrible thing has happened!" I continued. "The evil shadow spirit has been released! Impa, the leader of Kakariko Village, had sealed the evil shadow spirit in the bottom of the well... But the force of the evil spirit got so strong, the seal of the well broke, and it escaped into the world! I believe Impa has gone to the Shadow Temple to seal it up again, but...she will be in danger without any help! Link! Impa is one of the six Sages. Destroy the evil shadow spirit and save Impa! There is an entrance to the Shadow Temple beneath the graveyard behind this village. The only thing I can do for you is teach you the melody that will lead you to the Shadow Temple... This is the melody that will draw you into the infinite darkness that absorbs even time... Listen to this, the Nocturne of Shadow!" We played the song together and I looked him in the eyes. "Let me take care of the village! I'm counting on you, Link!"

"Ok. Thanks for taking care of my wounds," he said.

I abruptly stopped walking backwards, ready to disappear and looked at him. "You are welcome, Link…" I remembered what I had wondered previously and asked him: "You don't have any broken bones you feel, do you?"

He looked confused for a second, and looked at his body, moving his arms and legs around. "No, I don't think so. I've got a few that are healing, but nothing new I think."

"Oh." There was the guilt again. "Ok then," I quietly added.

I threw a deku nut and appeared on the roof of Impa's old house. I watched Link sigh. "Why are you always gone so fast?" he mused, before he ran off towards the graveyard.

I sighed too. "I wish I didn't have to," I whispered and I jumped down and entered the house.

The cucco lady jumped at the sound of the door opening, but she quickly recovered. "Sheik! Oh thank the goddesses it's you. What happened?" she asked.

"I can't explain, but I am here to check if you are alright," I said.

"Yes, I am," she answered.

"Everybody here?" I asked, looking around the room. There was a ginger boy, sitting on a chair in the corner, two similar looking men playing a card game and an old man, reading a book.

"Yes. I will provide them shelter until the storm is over. You don't have to worry about it," she said.

"Thank you. You are a truly brave woman. You really are," I said.

Her face became slightly pinker, and she smiled. "Thank you."

I left and checked the other houses. The shop owner, the shooting gallery owner and the potion shop owner all looked fine. I entered another house to see that the lady who lived there was fine, such as the man sleeping on a bed, and the other people sitting around a fire.

"It's sweet you are checking on us. We were all very scared. Still are, actually. But when I saw Impa, I knew things would be ok," the lady smiled. She followed my gaze to the man sleeping. "He's not from here nor Castle Town. I think he used to be the owner of Lon Lon, and he keeps saying Malon in his sleep. I wonder who that is…"

"It's his daughter," I sighed. "You can tell him when he awakens that his ranch is no longer belongs to Ingo, but him and his daughter once again."

"I will. Good bye."

I thanked her and left. The only building left was rather hard to enter, and I needed to jump over a high fence to do so. Inside I found an old lady, stroking her cat.

"Hello, my name is Sheik, survivor of the Sheikahs, and I am here to see if you are alright," I say.

She looked at me with a mysterious grin. "I am. But you however aren't."

I shifted uncomfortably. "How do you know?"

"Take this," she said, handing me a potion.

"What is this?" I asked.

"The ultimate potion. Heals everything. Including broken bones," she replied.

"Really?" I asked, still not fully trusting it.

"If you don't believe me, ask the young hero."

"Link has used these?"

"Yes, of course he has. He wouldn't be able to walk if he hadn't taken them," she says firmly.

Another wave of guilt washed over me. "Ok then. How many rupees?"

"You are special. It's free."

"Err ok then…" I said, feeling weird after her calling me special. Did she know? I shook my head and left, sitting under the cucco pen again. I lay down in a bale of hay.

As I slowly drifted away to sleep, a tear slid across my face.


End file.
